CELEBRATIONS! - Mass Tree Wardensmasstreewardens.org/wp-content/uploads/BARK_Spring-2013-20-page… · CELEBRATIONS! The Massachusetts ... Ted Bubbins, Plymouth Dan Connolly, Orleans

M a s s a c h u s e t t s T r e e W a r d e n s a n d F o r e s t e r s A s s o c i a t i o n

2013 Issue 1

Spring

CELEBRATIONS!

The Massachusetts Tree Wardens and For-

esters Association celebrated the Centenni-

al with not one but two major events. The

highly successful January conference in

Sturbridge was followed a short two months

later by a celebration at UMass Amherst.

The March event be-

gan with the UMass

Tree Conference, the

successor to George

Stoness first work-

shop for profession-

als, a School for

Tree Wardens and

City Foresters at the

Massachusetts Agri-

cultural College on

March 26-27, 1913.

Highlights of the 2013

UMass event on

March 12th included

a strong speaker

lineup, the presenta-

tion of annual schol-

arship awards, and

an evening dinner gala hosted by the Asso-

ciation at the top of the Campus Center.

January Conference in Sturbridge and

UMass Tree Conference &

Association Dinner Gala in March

Mark the 100th Anniversary of MTWFA

Dr. H. Dennis Ryan, UMass professor of

arboriculture, welcomed the crowd from

behind a podium flanked on one side by

an original 1935 oil portrait of Dr. Stone

and on the other side by a 1913 photo-

graph of the founders. The short pro-

gram included congratulatory remarks

and the gift of a handsome tree book

from the Massachusetts Arborists Asso-

ciation; remarks by Peter Church, De-

partment of Conservation and Recrea-

tion, speaking of the long and fruitful

partnership of DCR with the Association;

and a brief but moving account of Asso-

ciation history and tradition by MTWFA

Past President Patrick Ellis.

Jazz music by a student ensemble, bal-

loons and festive centerpieces with

seedlings, a sumptuous buffet dinner, a

centennial cake, and the distribution of

the 100th anniversary book, The Centen-

nial Year, all combined to make it a spe-

cial evening indeed. Happy Birthday

MTWFA!

For more on the centennial celebrations,

see conference highlights on page 8 and

pictures on pages 6-7 and 10-11.

UMass Professor Emeritus Gordon King received the Stone Award in 1989 (above). Prof. King could not be present on March 12th but sent his best wishes to all.

OFFICERS

PresidentDavid Lefcourt, Cambridge

Vice PresidentRobert LeBlanc, Walpole

TreasurerJohn Haines, East Bridgewater

SecretaryPaul Sellers, Falmouth

Past PresidentChris Hayward, Watertown

COUNTY DELEGATES

EssexGuy Shepard, Georgetown

MiddlesexMarc Welch, Newton

Plymouthopen

Norfolk/BristolKent Warren, Wellesley

Western Mass.David Hawkins, Pelham

WorcesterGeorge Ackerson, Clinton

AT-LARGE MEMBERS

Ted Bubbins, Plymouth

Dan Connolly, Orleans

Joel Custance, Lexington

Michael Quinn, Wellesley

Alex Sherman, Springfield

Kevin Weber, Sharon

ADVISORS

David Bloniarz, U.S. Forest Service

Thomas Brady, Town of Brookline

Peter Buttkus, Town of Duxbury

Thomas Chamberland, Town of Sturbridge

Arthur Jeselonis, Medford

Melissa LeVangie, Petersham

James MacArthur, National Grid

John Parry, U.S. Forest Service

Dennis Ryan, University of Massachusetts

Eric Seaborn, Massachusetts DCR

NEWSLETTER EDITOR

Karen Doherty, MTWFA Executive Director

MTWFA Executive Board 2013

MASSACHUSETTS TREE WARDENS AND

FORESTERS ASSOCIATION

781-894-4759 [email protected]

www.masstreewardens.org

P.O. Box 326 South Hadley, MA

01075

MTWFAMTWFA

[email protected] 781-894-4759 2 Spring 2013

REMEMBER

TO ORDER YOUR SEEDLINGS

FOR ARBOR DAY!

DEADLINE IS APRIL 17

Association News & Notes 3

2013 Scholarship Winners 3

Index of Advertisers 4

Arbor Day Ideas from DCR 4

MAA Arbor Day of Service 5

100th Anniversary Gala in Pictures 6-7

2013 Conference Highlights 8

State Announces EAB Quarantine Area 9

2013 Conference in Pictures 10-11

PLANET: UMass Team Says Thank You 12

When Trees Die, People Die 13

Tree Physics Limits Height and Leaf Size 14

Calendar of Events 16

In this issue

www.masstreewardens.org 3 Spring 2013

ASSOCIATION NEWS AND NOTES

WELCOME NEW MEMBERS

Todd BealesMontague

Seth BernatchezLunenberg

Ben BrownWorthington

Gregory DorrWinchester

John FeenerIpswich

Marc Fournier, MCANewton

Michael FreemanDanvers

Robert PresuttiPittsfield

Paul RaskevitzGreenfield

Sara SankowichHampton, NH

Green Trees ArborcareNorfolk

Muni-Tech, Inc.North Attleborough

Safe Harbor Planting & DesignChatham

DONT MISS A SINGLE ISSUE OF THE BARK

To stay connected, be sure to send in your

2013 membership dues before June 1st.

Remember...

This year only, each paid

member (2013 calendar year)

will receive one complimen-

tary copy of the 2013 com-

memorative book, The Cen-

tennial Year. Books will be

mailed to members beginning

in April.

Scholarships were awarded to students on

March 12, 2013 at the UMass Tree Conference

in Amherst.

Photo above: MTWFA Scholarship winners (left to

right) Ethan Dangelo, Todd Beales, Tyler Pease,

President David Lefcourt, Casey Clapp, James Sacco

Photo left: Southeast Tree Wardens scholarship win-

ners (left to right) Ryan Due, Shane McCallister,

President Craig Hillman, Conor Laffey, Nicolette

Eicholtz


Acorn Tree and Landscape ................... 15

Amherst Nurseries ............................... 17

Arbor Care .......................................... 17

Bartlett Consolidated ........................... 16

Cleaves Company ................................ 9

Cranes Aerial Truck Service ................ 4

CUES Equipment ................................. 18

Davey Resource Group ........................ 19

FEVA .................................................. 5

Horticultural Technologies .................... 9

Northeast Nursery ................................ 18

OESCO ............................................... 17

Orange Saws ....................................... 5

Profl. Environmental Services .............. 14

Shelter Tree ........................................ 13

Urban Forestry Solutions ...................... 5

INDEX OF ADVERTISERSINDEX OF ADVERTISERS Give away seedlings to elementary students in

your community (To download a seedling brochure, visit www.masstreewardens.org. Ordering deadline is April 17th)

Host an Arbor Day Festival

Sponsor an Arbor Day cleanup to clean up street trees in the community

Host an Ask an Arborist event in your town

Hold a Tree Discovery Day at the library for

youngsters

Put on an assembly for students (Tree Benefits Jeopardy! is always a favorite!)

Participate in the Massachusetts Arbor Day Poster Contest (Information at www.mass.gov/dcr/stewardship/forestry/urban/urbanBranch.htm. Dead-line is April 19)

Plant trees and hold a ceremony

Work with the Massachusetts Arborist Association to sponsor an Arbor Day of Service (See facing page)

Dedicate a tree in your community

Reprinted from the Citizen Forester, February 2013 Mass. DCR Urban & Community Forestry Program

IDEAS from DCR Arbor Day is April 26


After a year of devastating hurricanes and record-

setting snow storms, there has never been a better

time to gain support for tree care in your community.

MAA's Arbor Day of Service is happening on Friday,

April 26, 2013 (Massachusetts Arbor Day). Is there a

tree care project in your town or neighborhood? It can

be large or small at the town common, on a school

playground, in a park or anywhere! Member compa-

nies of the Massachusetts Arborists Association are

looking to team up on service projects and help make a

difference in their communities.

If you are a municipality or organization looking for

support on an Arbor Day project, MAA invites you to

post your project idea at the Arbor Day of Service sec-

tion of the MAA website (www.massarbor.org). There

you can create an account and use ArborDay2013 for

the referral code.

Arbor Day of Service 2013 Sponsors Bartlett Tree Experts

Cleaves Company, Inc. Davey Tree Expert Co. Lueders Environmental

McSweeney & Ricci Insurance Company Olde Colonial Tree and Landscape

Schmidt Equipment

http://massarbor.us5.list-manage.com/track/click?u=4ba34bcf22b4baa70cdd1c577&id=fe75684ea1&e=4959606de7http://www.massarbor.org/arborday/add.phphttp://www.massarbor.org/arborday/add.php


Left: UMass student ensemble, Mike Caudill

and friends, entertain during the social hour.

Below: Peter Church, Mass. DCR Director of

Forest Stewardship, speaks on the enduring

partnership with MTWFA.

Below: Norma Ryans gift of a centenni-

al diamond (accompanied by 10 choco-

late carats/carrots wrapped in foil)

Left: Keynote

speaker Patrick

Ellis, MTWFA

Past President

Below: Past Presi-

dents Ed Casey

and Wes Osborne


Left: Trainer Paul Sellers instructs Ted Bubbins

in senior calisthenics while measuring balloon

ribbons prior to the evening dinner gala. Board

members in background operate the helium

tank, tie ribbons and supervise.

Below: Kelly Woods and Melissa LeVangie

show off the Centennial Book as Marc Welch

and Karen Doherty discuss what to do next.

Below right: Ellis Allen holds tightly to his copy.

Below left: The Marriott dinner buffet at the Campus

Center

PSSST.

More pictures on our Facebook page!


On Tuesday January 15th and Wednesday January

16th, a record 300 attendees and exhibitors gathered

at the Host Hotel and Conference Center in Sturbridge

to attend the 100th Annual Conference of the Massa-

chusetts Tree Wardens and Foresters Association

(MTWFA). Up from the usual 225 attendees, the two-

day centennial event featured a list of renowned speak-

ers and a trade show floor filled with exhibitors display-

ing equipment, technology and literature for sale (and

even free handouts!). In addition to informative lectures

and an annual business meeting, the Centennial Con-

ference wasnt all work and no play; door prizes, net-

working, a lunchtime awards ceremony and a social

anniversary dinner made the two day event action-

packed and fun-filled.

Kicking off day one, state specialists from the Massa-

chusetts Department of Conservation & Recreation

(Eric Seaborn, Julie Coop and Ken Gooch) provided an

annual update on a number of topics ranging from

community reforestation initiatives to urban forest

heath activities, including the latest on Asian Long-

horned Beetle and Emerald Ash Borer two invasive

insects known to devastate trees.

Over the two-day period, attendees also heard from U.

S. Forest Service specialists. Dr. Nathan Siegert pro-

vided a forest pest update and John Parry discussed

the Urban Forest Strike Team an initiative designed

to assist communities where areas of urban forests

have been damaged or even destroyed from a storm

event.

Faculty from the University of Massachusetts were well

represented on the roster of speakers. Bob Childs, Ex-

tension Entomologist and recent recipient of the Mas-

sachusetts Arborists Associations prestigious VISTA

award, discussed a host of insect challenges over the

last century that have threatened (and in some cases

continue to impact) the well-being of our community

trees. Bob also recounted entomological occurrences

and achievements of the past that were the direct re-

sult of the strong tie between UMass Amherst and the

MTWFA, including the formation of the Shade Tree Lab

in Waltham, MA in 1949.

Dr. Nick Brazee, Extension Pathologist and Plant Diag-

nostic Director, outlined a number of woody plant dis-

eases of importance that were present during the grow-

ing season of 2012. He especially highlighted the im-

portance of Dutch elm disease past and present, and

how this pathogen shaped policy and tree care practice

in Massachusetts, further underscoring the relationship

between UMass Amherst and the MTWFA.

In addition to speaking about industry practices then

and now (including an update on the A300/Z-133 safety

standard changes) the ever-popular Dr. Dennis Ryan,

arborist and UMass Amherst Professor of Arboriculture,

was the surprise recipient of the 2013 MTWFA George

E. Stone Award.

Named after the UMass professor who founded the

MTWFA at UMass on March 27, 1913, the Stone

Award is the highest honor bestowed by this organiza-

tion and only presented on an occasional basis. It is

reserved for a member who has continuously demon-

strated outstanding dedication, with many hours of vol-

unteer service to the organization. A historical display

at the conference featured a picture of Dr. Ryans pre-

decessor, Professor Gordon King, receiving the Stone

Award in 1989. Congratulations, Dr. Ryan!

And congratulations to the MTWFA on the successful

celebration of their Centennial 100 years and still

growing!

MTWFA CELEBRATES 100 YEARS

The article below was written by Rick W. Harper, Ex-tension Assistant Professor of Urban & Community

Forestry, UMass-Amherst. It was originally published in the DCR Citizen Forester, February 2013.

Yet another highlight of the 100th Annual Conference

in January was the presentation of the Presidents

Award to Eric Seaborn, Urban and Community Forestry

Coordinator, Massachusetts Department of Conserva-

tion and Recreation.

Christopher Hayward,

President 2011-2012,

presented Eric with the

award, a handsome wood-

en watch, with apprecia-

tion for his service to the

organization and to the

Commonwealth. Through-

out his time at DCR, Eric

has worked closely with

the MTWFA to foster ur-

ban forestry efforts in the

Commonwealth.

ERIC SEABORN HONORED WITH MTWFA PRESIDENTS AWARD


STATE OFFICIALS ANNOUNCE

EAB QUARANTINE

Officials from the Massachusetts Department of Con-

servation and Recreation (DCR) announced on Febru-

ary 21, 2013 that a quarantine will be established in

Berkshire County, in order to stop the spread of the

invasive insect species emerald ash borer (EAB). The

decision came after extensive survey in the affected

area and public hearings. The quarantine took effect

March 1, 2013.

The emerald ash borer brings a very serious threat to

our ash trees, and we are not taking its presence light-

ly, said DCR Commissioner Ed Lambert. We believe

a county-wide quarantine will allow the best chance at

slowing the spread of emerald ash borer.

EAB was first detected in Massachusetts in Dalton in

August of 2012. Massachusetts is the eighteenth state

discovered to have EAB within its borders.

Immediately following the EAB detection, DCR began

work with the Massachusetts Department of Agricultur-

al Resources (MDAR), the United States Forest Ser-

vice (USFS), and the United State Department of Agri-

cultures (USDA) Animal and Plant Health Inspection

Service (APHIS) to formulate a plan for dealing with the

invasive insect. DCR set up more than 700 EAB traps

across the Commonwealth.

With funding from the USFS, DCR also girdled 26

trees, a process known as delimiting that stresses the

individual trees in an attempt to attract and sequester

any EAB in the area. After the delimiting survey was

completed around the Dalton/Pittsfield area, five trees

were found to have EAB larvae present. These trees

are located within a 1.5 mile radius of the trap where

the first EAB beetle was detected in August 2012.

DCR engaged in a public outreach campaign, including

public meetings that allowed the public to express their

opinions and concerns on the topic of quarantine.

Though most public comments posted in the aftermath

of these meetings called for quarantine as small as sci-

entifically possible, the studies conducted indicated that

a county-wide quarantine would work best.

The quarantine order means that certain products will

be regulated from moving outside the regulated area,

including all hardwood firewood (any piece of wood

smaller than 48), all ash nursery stock, and any ash

lumber that has not been treated. Proper wood treat-

ments include the removal of bark and half an inch of

wood, dry kiln sterilization, fumigation, and heat treat-

ments.

The state of New York recently added 22 new counties

to their EAB quarantine, including counties that abut the

Berkshire County border. This will allow wood to move

from quarantined county to quarantined county, includ-

ing moving regulated wood from Massachusetts to the

mills that are just over the border in New York, relieving

some of the financial pressure on the wood industry in

Berkshire County.

Plans for future surveys are currently being discussed.

EAB traps will be utilized again this summer in Massa-

chusetts, and approximately 100 ash trees will be gir-

dled to continue to help narrow the infestation.

The Massachusetts Department of Conservation and Recrea-tion (DCR) is an agency of the Executive Office of Energy and Environmental Affairs. Visit the DCR website at www.mass.gov/dcr.


Left: Dennis Ryan accepts the George E.

Stone Award from James MacArthur.

Right: Alan Snow, Town of Amherst, received

the 2013 Tree Warden of the Year Award.

Below: Bob Childs presented his annual pest

updatespiced up this year with a number of

historical notes on insect infestations of the

past.

Above left: Display boards with historical

notes and photographs greeted attendees

in the entrance hall.

Below left: The amazing centennial cake at

the conference evening dinner

Below: Christie Smith with Wes Osborne

Left: Keynote speaker

Tom Wessels, author

of Reading the Forest-

ed Landscape


2013

Annual Conference

Sturbridge, MA

More pictures on

our Facebook page!

Above: Donald Keniston, recognized

for his 50 years of service as tree

warden for the Town of Upton.

Below: Karen Doherty, still smiling...

Below right: Kelly Woods and

Paul Sellers show a sample ash-

wood Biltmore stick made from

Midwestern trees killed by the

emerald ash borner. Below: The evening dinner at

the Host Hotel

Above: Carl Cathcart (on

left) and John Moran


UNIVERSITY OF MASSACHUSETTS Department of Landscape Architecture

AMHERST and Regional Planning

109 Hills North

Amherst, MA 01003-9357

Dear UMass/Stockbridge School PLANET Student Career Days Team Supporter,

The 14 members of the Stockbridge School / UMass PLANET SCD's Team traveled to Auburn University in Ala-

bama from March 6th through March 10

th and returned with some impressive results. Ethan Dangelo and Luke

Longstreeth placed #1 in Arboriculture Techniques, Joe Argillo placed #1 in Compact Excavator, and Sean Reginer

placed #1 in Computer Aided Design. Joe Agrillo placed #5 in Maintenance Cost Estimating, and he also placed #8

in Small Engine Repair, taking home a chain saw for placing in the top 10. Nick Brown placed #8 in 3D Exterior

Design and #7 in Leadership Skills.

The team also had 6 members who placed in the top 20 in their events, 8 members in the top 30, and 3 members

placed in the top 35 in their events. With over 70 colleges and universities attending and almost 900 students com-

peting, these are impressive results. The team represented UMass and Stockbridge School of Agriculture with

pride and professionalism.

Many industry professionals as well as the College of Natural Sciences and the College of Social and Behavioral

Sciences at UMass Amherst supported the Team.

Several industry associations played a major part including:

Massachusetts Association of Landscape Professionals (MLP) (Platinum Sponsor)

Massachusetts Arborists Association (MAA)

New England ISA

Massachusetts Tree Wardens and Foresters Association (MTWFA)

Without the strong support the team receives, this opportunity would be out of reach for most of the members. We

would like to extend a heartfelt thank you to everyone who helped make this years trip a memorable and reward-

ing experience.

Nick Henderson

Chris Johnston

Luke Longstreeth

Collin McGrady

Henry Puza

Sean Regnier

John Waters

Joe Agrillo

Nic Brown

Michael Carbone

Alex Cembalisty

Robert Coffman

Ethan Dangelo

Nicole Forsyth

The 2013 UMass / Stockbridge School

PLANET Student Career Days Team:

Ethan Dangelo (on left), Stockbridge 12, UMass 14 with fellow

PLANET team member Luke Longstreeth, Stockbridge 13.


WHEN TREES DIE, PEOPLE DIE

By Lindsay Abrams January 22., 2013

Captured from http://www.theatlantic.com/health/

archive/2013/01/when-trees-die-people-die/267322/.

Link submitted by Tom Brady

The blight was first detected in June 2002, when the

trees in Canton, Michigan, got sick. The culprit, the

emerald ash borer, had arrived from overseas, and it

rapidly spread -- a literal bug -- across state and na-

tional lines to Ohio, Minnesota, Ontario. It popped up

in more distant, seemingly random locations as in-

fested trees were unwittingly shipped beyond the

Midwest.

Within four years of first becoming infested, the ash

trees die -- over 100 million since the plague began.

In some cases, their death has an immediate impact,

as they fall on cars, houses, and people. In the long

term, their disappearance means parks and neigh-

borhoods, once tree-lined, are now bare.

American Journal of Preventive Medicine

Something else, less readily apparent, may have

happened as well. When the U.S. Forest Service

looked at mortality rates in counties affected by the

emerald ash borer, they found increased mortality

rates. Specifically, more people were dying of cardio-

vascular and lower respiratory tract illness -- the first

and third most common causes of death in the U.S.

As the infestation took over in each of these places,

the connection to poor health strengthened.

The "relationship between trees and human health,"

as they put it, is convincingly strong. They controlled

for as many other demographic factors as possi-

Continued on page 19


DAVIS Why are the leaves on the tallest trees all

about the same size, and why arent those tall trees

even taller? It all has to do with basic scientific princi-

ples at work in nature, according to researchers at Har-

vard University and the University of California, Davis.

In both cases leaf size and tree height the expla-

nations are rooted in the physics of the trees plumbing,

or the branching vascular system that nourishes the

tree from leaf to trunk, the researchers write in this

weeks issue of the journal Physical Review Letters. It

all comes down to the leaf size and tree height that

provide for the optimal flow of sap and energy through-

out the tree, said Maciej Zwieniecki, a biologist in the

UC Davis Department of Plant Sciences, who collabo-

rated on the study with biophysicist Kaare Jensen of

Harvard University. Their findings offer a new explana-

tion for the lack of tall trees in environments with limited

water and the prevalence of the tallest trees in the

worlds most forgiving environments, such as tropical

rain forests or foggy river ravines.

In this study, the researchers focused on angiosperms,

the group of flowering plants that includes trees like

oak and sycamore, rather than on the gymnosperm

group, which includes trees like pine and spruce. In

analyzing data on 1,925 angiosperm tree species, they

found that, overall, tree leaves range in size all the way

from less than one inch to more than four feet long.

The tallest of these trees, however, have leaves that

fall in the relatively narrow range of approximately 4

inches to 8 inches long. Jensen and Zwieniecki sug-

gest that this surprising decline in leaf size diversity

that accompanies increasing tree height is a product of

fluid dynamics within the tree.

Like most other plants, trees fuel their growth and de-

velopment through photosynthesis the natural pro-

cess that uses water, carbon dioxide, minerals and

sunlight energy to produce carbohydrates. The sugar-

rich fluid produced through photosynthesis in the

leaves travels to other parts of the tree via a system of

channels called phloem. The researchers modeled the

tree phloem system as if it were composed of permea-

ble, cylindrical tubes. The leaf phloem collected the

sugar-rich fluid and generated energy to transport it

through a much longer tube running down the trunk.

As the fluid passed through the leaf phloem toward the

stem, it gathered speed as more and more water was

pulled in from the leaf through osmosis. Consequently,

the longer the leaf, the faster the fluid flowed, much like

streams rushing toward a river. When the fluid reached

the tree trunk, however, no more sugar was collected

in the phloem, and only water was drawn from the sur-

rounding tissue. The trunk phloem was longer and,

consequently, presented more resistance to the fluids

flow as it traveled down the trunk and to the roots.

This model illustrated two functions at work, one involv-

ing leaf size and the other related to tree height. First,

there was an advantage for a tree to have larger

leaves because it could produce more nutrient-rich flu-

id that would flow more quickly toward the trunk and

roots. If the trees leaves were too small, the fluid

would move too slowly to be beneficial. Secondly, alt-

hough increased height might provide some trees with

better access to sunlight, it also would increase the

length and thus flow resistance of the trunk phloem,

slowing the movement of nutrients toward the roots.

So there comes a point where the optimal limits on

leaf size and tree height intersect, indicating the point

at which it is no longer advantageous for the tree to

become taller or producer larger leaves, Zwieniecki

said. He noted that this point is approximately 100 me-

ters, or slightly more than 300 feet about the size of

the tallest angiosperms. Funding for the study was provid-

ed by the National Science Foundation and the U.S. Air

Force Office of Scientific Research

2013-01-11 Contact: Pat Bailey, UC Davis News Service Email: [email protected]

Article submitted by Tom Chamberland

TREE PHYSICS LIMITS HEIGHT AND LEAF SIZE

mailto:[email protected]


Visit our mature specimen tree farm. Over

2,000 mature trees available to instantly

establish your landscape.

Relocate your mature plant material to

create instant shade, privacy and beauty.

We offer a wide selection of mature

specimen trees:

Japanese Maple

Dogwood

Beech

Sugar Maple

Spruce

and more...

MA Certified Arborist

Owner Operated

Horticultural Consultant

Planting Plans

A leader in New England

in large tree & shrub

transplanting

Harvard, MA Tel: 978-635-0409 Fax: 978-635-9840 [email protected]


CT - 860-886-7081

NH - 603-889-4071

ASK ABOUT

OUR RENTAL

PROGRAM!

www.CUESequip.com


ble. And yet, they are unable to satisfactorily explain

why this might be so.

In a literal sense, of course, the absence of trees would

mean the near absence of oxygen -- on the most basic

level, we cannot survive without them. We know, too,

that trees act as a natural filter, cleaning the air from

pollutants, with measurable effects in urban areas. The

Forest Service put a 3.8 billion dollar value on the air

pollution annually removed by urban trees. In Washing-

ton D.C., trees remove nitrogen dioxide to an extent

equivalent to taking 274,000 cars off the traffic-packed

beltway, saving an estimated $51 million in annual pol-

lution-related health care costs.

But a line of modern thought suggests that trees and

other elements of natural environments might affect our

health in more nuanced ways as well. Roger Ulrich

demonstrated the power of having a connection with

nature, however tenous, in his classic 1984 study with

patients recovering from gall bladder removal surgery in

a suburban Pennsylvania hospital. He manipulated the

view from the convalescents' windows so that half were

able to gaze at nature while the others saw only a brick

wall. Those with trees outside their window recovered

faster, and requested fewer pain medications, than

those with a "built" view. They even had slightly fewer

surgical complications.

Environmental psychologists Rachel and Stephen

Kaplan attributed nature's apparent restorative ability to

something they termed "soft fascination": Natural

scenes, they theorized, are almost effortlessly able to

capture people's attention and lull them into a sort of

hypnotic state where negative thoughts and emotions

are overtaken by a positive sense of well-being. Indeed,

an analysis of numerous studies in BMC Public Health

found evidence for natural environments having "direct

and positive impacts on well-being," in the form of re-

duced anger and sadness.

The effect, it has been suggested, can have subtler

effects than a mere elevation of mood. A 2010 study

looked at the presence of parks and forests in the vicini-

ty of people's homes and their ability to act as a "buffer"

against stress. They ending up finding that the pres-

ence of "green space" was more closely related to

physical -- in terms of minor complaints and perceived

general health -- than mental well-being. While nature

wasn't enough to make the participants forget about

stressful life events, it appeared to quell their psychoso-

matic complaints.

The increases in mortality identified by the Forest Ser-

vice study, meanwhile, were more pronounced in coun-

ties where the median household income was above

average. The disparity highlights what we intuitively

know about the presence of trees: In wealthier commu-

nities, they increase the market value of homes, while

parks in poor neighborhoods attract crime and are thus

undesirable. The researchers hypothesize that the rich

communities that thrived before the blight arrived thus

experienced its destructive effects more potently.

Which is all to say that there is something fascinatingly

mysterious about the entanglement of our health with

that of nature. The suspicion that this may be so, of

course, is seen well outside of the scientific literature

on the topic. Maurice Sendak knew it, as he spoke of

his appreciation for the trees seen from his window in

the final months of his life. And Henry David Thoreau,

writing in The Atlantic in June 1862, said, "I think that I

cannot preserve my health and spirits, unless I spend

four hours a day at least -- and it is commonly more

than that -- sauntering through the woods and over the

hills and fields, absolutely free from all worldly engage-

ments."

When Trees Die, People Diecontinued from page 13

FIRST-CLASS MAIL

U.S.POSTAGE PAID

SOUTH HADLEY, MA

PERMIT NO. 326


20132013 MTWFA CentennialMTWFA Centennial

April 24 Deadline to register for New England ISA Workshop: SRT (Single Rope Technique) Saturday, May 4 Bristol, RI

www.necisasrt.eventbrite.com www.newenglandisa.org

April 26April 26 Arbor Day (Massachusetts)Arbor Day (Massachusetts)

April 26 Arbor Day of Service (ADoS) Massachusetts Arborists Association

www.massarbor.org (See article on page 5 of this issue)

May 1 State Regulations Pertaining to Invasive Plant Management Doubletree Hotel, Milford, MA

www.umassgreeninfo.org 413-545-0895

May 14 The Invasive Plant Issue and Invasive Plant Identification Doubletree Hotel, Milford, MA


May 18 New England ISA Tree Climbing Competition Goddard Memorial Park, Warwick, RI

www.newenglandisa.org

June 11 Developing an Invasive Plant Management Program Doubletree Hotel, Milford, MA

http://www.umassgreeninfo.org/http://www.umassgreeninfo.org/http://www.umassgreeninfo.org/http://www.umassgreeninfo.org/

Documents

CELEBRATIONS! - Mass Tree Wardensmasstreewardens.org/wp-content/uploads/BARK_Spring-2013-20-page… · CELEBRATIONS! The Massachusetts ... Ted Bubbins, Plymouth Dan Connolly, Orleans